Hello from Ca.

[apico21]

hello, Iam new at this thrift store thing but Iam loving it! I think I am already addicted! I got my fiance into it too, we went to a few while on vacation and found some pretty interesting things. Does anyone know of a good website to go to where you can identify the things you find? I'm having trouble finding what things are and if they are worth anything, even with quiet a bit of research on my part. An example is my picture on here, it looks like an asian woman, we thought it was ivory at first but looking at it further, I dont think it is.  I wonder if any of you know what country it was made (Im thinking China) or how old it looks. It does have writing on the back in some oriental writing. Thank you and I will look forward to comparing our "treasures" together!
-April

[Good Buddy]

SeSo Knows...She knows everything..

[Cookie]

Hello and welcome!  We're glad you're here.  Try http://www.collectibledetective.com/to find some help identifying your figurine.  There's a lot of links on there and it might be a good place to start.

[anastasiabeaverhausen]

Hi there!
Was just in beautiful Monterey Cali!  Great thrift stores, but was glad to get back to the east coast prices..lol
welcome..you'll love it here..everyone is very friendly and very knowledgeable!

[DianneK]

Hi and welcome from Central Florida.Glad you joined.The folks here are just wonderful!!!

[Pedeka]

Hello back from Ohio. I have a pragmatic idea about value of things and so I check prices against e-Bay. I figure it doesn't mater what a book says, things are only worth what someone will pay and that's the easiest place to check that. Unless something is REALLY REALLY REALLY wonderful, then it's worth alot even if it wouldn't sell for alot.

[valleythriftshopper]

One of the SA's in my area gets totally carried away when they think they have something collectible.  Today they had a vintage fiesta juice disc pitcher in the case for $50.00, you could get one on Ebay for less, yellow is the most common color.  Also two McCoy 70's cookie jars that are not valuable one priced at 30 the other 40 dollars.  I guess someone came in to the store & told them how valuable they were so they marked them up- now they won't sell at all probably.  Stupid!

[nancydr2]

OMG, there are so many stores in my area that think everything is a valuable collectible and way overprice it.  Savers is the worst.  They'll mark some of the biggest crap at ridiculously high prices. Even at half price it would be too much.

I was at a smaller thrift store over the weekend and saw a cute angel figurine from the 1950's, but the head was broken off and laying next to it.  It was marked $5.  Since I use broken ceramic pieces in art work, I asked the clerk if they'd sell it for less since the damage obviously happened after they marked it.  I was informed that those sell on eBay for $40-50.  I responded that it might sell for $20 on a very good day if it were in mint condition, but broken, it was worth nothing. 

This drives me nuts!  I realize they are just trying to make a buck for their charity, but come on. 

I guess you struck a nerve with me!

[valleythriftshopper]

I think it is especially annoying since they always say it in a know it all way like they are appraisers from Anitiques Roadshow, when in fact they are clueless! 

[nancydr2]

April, I was totally rude in not saying hello to you and welcoming.  I guess one of my buttons got pushed and I lost all sense of decorum!  I hope you enjoy being here.

[valleythriftshopper]

Same here, welcome!  Looking forward to seeing all your finds!  Ebay is a place to start for info.  I find just searching item descriptions on google or yahoo helps too.

[apico21]

 Thanks everyone for your hello's! I think I'm addicted to thrifting, its all I can think about lol. Tomorrow morning Im going to hit up the garage sales and see what treasures I can find. Allow me to introduce myself more properly, Im a recently stay at home mom, (I quit my job in May) to my little 9 month old son Jayce. I knew it would be a challenge for me and my husband with one income, I got the idea to try to make a little bit of money on Ebay selling things I pick up cheap at thrift stores. The problem is I don't know enough about what is worth $$ and what is junk lol. But I'm learning little by little, and it's actually fun to learn about the history of a certian piece, not just the value. Thanks for reading my ramblings and will look forward to your responses in the future!

[mccoysnina]

hello, Iam new at this thrift store thing but Iam loving it! I think I am already addicted! I got my fiance into it too, we went to a few while on vacation and found some pretty interesting things. Does anyone know of a good website to go to where you can identify the things you find? I'm having trouble finding what things are and if they are worth anything, even with quiet a bit of research on my part. An example is my picture on here, it looks like an asian woman, we thought it was ivory at first but looking at it further, I dont think it is.  I wonder if any of you know what country it was made (Im thinking China) or how old it looks. It does have writing on the back in some oriental writing. Thank you and I will look forward to comparing our "treasures" together!
-April

  Hi April!  Welcome aboard.    You'll like it here.
Jeannie

[nancydr2]

I do some selling on eBay, too.  Basically, I sell enough to cover the costs of everything I keep!  My advice is to pay close attention to condition, don't pay more than a couple dollars, and sell what you know.  For example, I'm a quilter, knitter and all around crafty person so I know that stuff.  I can do quite well with yarn, fabric and craft supplies/books because I work with it all the time. 

Amazingly (or not), I've often done the best on eBay with things I got in grab bags.  Once, I bought a bag of crafty stuff for myself and there was an unopened deck of cards from Southwest Airlines in the bag.  Normally, I'd redonate something like that, but I put them on eBay thinking I might get a couple of bucks.  I ended up getting $54.  For a deck of cards! 

With that said, do pay attention to your instinct, too.  I was compelled to buy a bag of Micro Machines once and it turns out that they do extremely well on eBay.

Sarah

[valleythriftshopper]

I do some selling on eBay, too.  Basically, I sell enough to cover the costs of everything I keep!  My advice is to pay close attention to condition, don't pay more than a couple dollars, and sell what you know.  For example, I'm a quilter, knitter and all around crafty person so I know that stuff.  I can do quite well with yarn, fabric and craft supplies/books because I work with it all the time. 

Amazingly (or not), I've often done the best on eBay with things I got in grab bags.  Once, I bought a bag of crafty stuff for myself and there was an unopened deck of cards from Southwest Airlines in the bag.  Normally, I'd redonate something like that, but I put them on eBay thinking I might get a couple of bucks.  I ended up getting $54.  For a deck of cards! 

Your Ebay experiences sound very similar to mine!  I sell alot in the craft (vintage sewing) category too, one of the prime reasons is that it is still the stuff that people undervalue at yard sales & sell for cheap!  My favorite thing to find is vintage embroidery/needlepoint kits.  The nice ones like Erica Wilson or Elsa Williams go for big bucks!  Airline collectibles can do well also.  My father worked for a few airlines so I have become familiar with this category too.  I have picked up some airline china at thrifts that I have sold.  Playing cards in general can be quite collectible.

Condition & maker tend to be the most important factors to collectors, even a tiny nick can deflate the value of some items.  Something cute & vintage may not sell well unless it is made by a desirable maker. 

When I first started selling on ebay if I saw something at a thrift that I thought might sell I would hide it & look it up before I bought it.  Yard sales are good because you can get a box of stuff for a few dollars & take your chances without risking your $.  I recently got a box of vintage sewing patterns for 2 dollars at a yard sale, not being an expert in patterns I was willing to take a box for that amount.  Turned out to be a good investment.  This pattern sold for 200 dollars, several others for 70-80 dollars, probably made about 500+ dollars from the whole box.  Wish I could find stuff like that all the time!